Hamilton College, Department of Geosciences

Barbara Tewksbury

Department of Geosciences
Hamilton College

I have outlined in the essay what I believe to be the strengths of our department. In the course of commenting on each topic, I also address issues of how we got to where we are and where we still need to go. The Department currently has 5.5 FTEs (a structural geologist, a petrologist, a glacial sedimentologist, a paleontologist, and a hydrogeologist, and we share a geomicrobiologist with the Biology Department).

Our introductory courses are topical, rather than survey, courses

Since 1986-87, we have offered four to five topical introductory courses each year. These topical courses are narrow and deep, rather than broad and shallow, giving students a chance to delve into a topic rather than to approach it at a survey level. Course topics are engaging and relevant to students and illuminate geoscience topics and thinking. We do not offer standard survey courses in physical and historical geology, and we do not offer any dead-end courses. Any of the introductory topical courses provides an entré